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Helsinki (day 1, part 2)

First of all, thank you to everyone who has read and commented on my blog so far. It means a lot to me and I hope to keep this blog updated at least once a week. It's great I now actually have photos of my own to upload!

I enjoyed yesterday's tour of the Parliament House (and I'm not just saying this because I'm majoring in politics...) The building itself was built in the 1920s (after Finland gained independence from Russia in 1907). All the furniture is original but it looks so modern.

These chairs are from the 1930s but an English tourist asked the guide last week if they were from IKEA. The ceiling is green... supposedly calming.

There is a swimming pool and sauna in the building somewhere (very Finnish) but I think what strikes me the most is that decisions made in this chamber have the potential to change lives and history...

The statue in the middle depicts a mother with her back to the chamber ('the past') holding a baby ('the future') looking out at the MPs, a reminder of the need to make decisions based on the future.

After that little history lesson, here's a more light-hearted photo of me at Suomenlinna (fortress island turned UNESCO World Heritage site). I've always loved islands... They're so peaceful and far-removed from everything else.

The joys of travelling solo means I have to keep asking people to help me take photos or take them myself like this... Beautiful, sunshiny weather :)